Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Can you believe our baby Dylan is 18 months old!! He is getting so big! We decided that it was time to give him a "big" boy haircut. We took him to the kids haircutting place by our house and he sat in the cool red car. I watched as they chopped his crazy wavy hair and tried not to cry. He looks so old now!! Maybe a little closer to his real age :) He is no longer our little baby and is becoming a fun little toddler!!

We had Dylan's eye pressure checked again last wednesday. We were expecting the pressure to be in the 15-20 range as it was the previous pressure check. This was not the case, and the pressure is back up. The surgery was not a success. As you can imagine, this was a huge setback and disappointment, BUT, God is in control and now we go to the next step. The doctor is going to do a 2nd goneotomy on both eyes. He is hoping it will work the second time around. It's hard to predict anything with Dylan because he is so special. There are not any other kids like him. He is a special case :) The doctor has another infant who recently underwent his 2nd goneotomy and it was successful the second time, so there is hope. If the surgery does not work, then the next step would be to put shunts in his eyes to drain the fluid. We want this surgery to be a last resort because it can only be done 4 times in each eye because it causes scar tissue. We are praying for success for this second surgery! Please join us!!Besides the eye pressure thing, Dylan is doing wonderful!! He now has 6 teeth! Two on the top and four on the bottom. He has been teething for what seems like forever and I will be VERY happy when he is done :) BUT, that is far away! He is chugging along developmentally. He is still really behind according to his age, but he is right on track according to his adjusted age (18 months -8 months of treatment). He is still not walking, but has crawling mastered....he is super speedy!! He CAN walk...he just chooses not to. He will take 7-10 steps from me to daddy, but other than that, he is not interested. A lot of his walking issues have to do with his vision. Which brings us back to his glasses. He hates them! I don't blame him, because if I were his age, I would hate them too. So, until he figures out that the horrible things I keep putting on his face actually help him see....he will be crawling. When he is crawling, he can see the floor below him. When he is 2 feet up, everything is blurry. I will try to get a good pic of him in his glasses and post it. But that will require him to keep them on for more than a minute :) Right now, when I put them on, he almost freezes and won't look around or play, he just concentrates on getting them off....which is hard when I am holding his hands or constantly trying to distract him with toys. It is a process. Please pray for us! I know he will eventually wear them and eventually walk, so I am not too worried.

Thank you for the continued love and support....you guys are AWESOME!!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

This is our 2009 walk team! We were overwhelmed with love and support and it was amazing to see the HOPE and LOVE that can come from friends and family joining together for a cause!

This year's walk is Saturday, November 6th at

Sahuaro Ranch Park

9805 N. 59th Avenue

Walk Distance: 2 miles

Check In: 5:00 PM

Opening Ceremony: 6:00PM (Dylan will be a part of this!! )

Walk Start Time: 6:30PM

HI EVERYONE!! First of all, I wanted to thank all of the people who came out to support Dylan and our family at last year's Light The Night Walk. Representing the largest team at the walk, we had 130 friends and family walk in Dylan's honor and help raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for research. This year, we are excited for another great night of fellowship, support, and raising funds for research and awareness of Leukemia.

When we did the walk last year, we were still in the middle of Dylan's treatments. He had his bone marrow transplant just two months earlier and he was still very weak and sick. His future was fragile, and we did not know if he was going to survive. We were walking in honor of him and in the hopes that God would heal him completely. I believe that God used research done by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to heal Dylan. Dylan was going through treatments that had no protocol for children his age. We choose to support LLS because of the amazing research they do. My dream would be that someday the survival rate of an infant diagnosed with Leukemia under the age of 6 months would go from 20% to 100%. The cure is out there, but the research needs to be done. Please join us in being a part in contributing to saving the lives of children and families who are affected by Leukemia and Lymphoma. This year, we CELEBRATE life with Dylan and are proud to have a survivor! Please come and CELEBRATE with us! We are excited to have Dylan present at the walk this year and maybe even WALKING this year! (maybe just a few steps :) Bring the kids and make it a family event. This year there will be entertainment for the kiddos too!

WANT TO JOIN OUR TEAM???

Sign up at http://pages.lightthenight.org/dm/WestSide10/DylansDreamTeam then click on "WALK WITH US". From there, you can create your own page and send supporters straight to your page to raise funds. When they donate online, it sends them a receipt via email. There are even gifts and prizes to those who raise over $250!

We want to challenge every walker on our team to raise $100 and become a Champion for a Cure. For every walker who raises $100 or more, you get a Light the Night T-Shirt, illuminated balloon, and a dinner that night from Texas Roadhouse! We are still working on getting team shirts, so stay tuned for more info on that! :)

We have set a team goal of $10,000. If we have at least 100 walkers, that is just $100 per walker. And remember, this is money you are RAISING. We know that the economy stinks right now and that people do not have a lot of extra money, but if you know 10 people that can donate $10 or 20 people who can donate $5, then you hit your goal!!

WANT TO DONATE?? Please go to our page and make a donation. Remember, no donation is too small, and every penny counts!

Please join us in supporting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as we help to find a cure for blood diseases.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! We are looking forward to a fun-filled evening on November 6th and can't wait to see you there!

One more thing! Dylan is a celebrity....well, at least a Leukemia Survivor Celebrity! If you go to Texas Roadhouse in arrowhead, you will see his picture! They are big supporters for LLS, and are raising funds! Enjoy a FREE appetizer with a $5 donation to LLS during the month of October.

Donations for Dylan

Donations for Dylan

Dylan is in remission and we are so thankful! He is one of the happiest little boys you will ever meet. Dylan does have glaucoma (side effect) and the yearly continued out-of-pocket medical costs are over $5,000. Should you wish to make a donation towards Dylan's continued expenses, we would really appreciate it. Thank you so much!

Baby Dylan Praskins was born on 4/16/09 to Erik and Michelle Praskins, who live in Surprise, AZ. On 6/13/09 at 8 weeks old, Dylan was diagnosed with infant leukemia. ALL (Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia) is a very aggressive cancer of the blood. Infants under 90 days old are considered very high risk. He was placed on an aggressive chemo therapy treatment, which also included a bone marrow transplant (cord blood) performed on September 11th, 2009. Whether God uses modern medicine or a miracle, we believe in the power of prayer. We believe that God has healed our son.